Photographic-print washer.



J. A. ROBERTSON.

PHOTGGRAPHIC PRINT WASHER.

APPLICATION FILED O0T.21, 1911.

Patented Feb. 18, 1913.

' meeee.

,.- 55e di UNITED sfraans PAfr JOI-IN A.- ROBERTSON, 0F ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSGNO T0 EASTMAN KGDAK COMPANY, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YQRK, .2. CGEPORATION @E NEW YURK.

PHOTOGRAPHC-PRINT WASHE.

Specification of "Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. f8, 1913.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, JOHN A. ROBERTSON, of Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Photographic-Print Washers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and

'exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and to thereferencenumerals marked thereon.

My present invention relates to photography ,and` more particularly to hotographic printing, and it has for its object to provide a simple and V4efficient device for Washing lthe prints after they have been passed through the various developing and fixing solutions.

The improvements are directed in part toward providing arrangements whereby the prints are constantly subjected to a fresh stream of water and are kept moving, being prevented from lodging at any one point and from clogging either the incoming or outgoing stream.

To these and other ends the invention consists in cert-ain improvements and combinations of parts all as will be hereinafter more fully described, the novel features' being pointed out in the claims at the end of the specification. v

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a top plan view of a rint washer constructed in accordance with and illustrating one embodiment of my invention; Fig. 2 1s a transverse vertical section t-aken substantiall on the line 2-2 of Fig. l; Fig. 3 is a det-ail section, enlarged, of the discharge nozzle., taken substantially on the line 3.-*3 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 4 is a det-ail section taken substantially on the line 4--4 of Fig. 3. i

Similar reference numerals throughout the several figures indicate the same parts.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 1 indicates a container thatmay be conveniently formed of sheet metal to comprise two substantially semi-cylindrical treating chambers 2 and?) l ing adjacent to and extending parallel with each other.

The inner or adjacent walls 4 thereof merge into one which forms a central Wall or artition extending the length of the contalner, and the top of which is considerably below the edges of the outer walls 5 and 6 and below the Water level of both chambers, as hereinafter defined.

A discharge nozzle, preferably composed of a pa.; of parallel pipes 7, separated to the extent of the thickness of the center Wall 4 and each having a series of perforations 8 in its underside, is preferably removably supported on the top of the wall 4. To this end the latter may be fitted with transversely extending chairs 9 having seats 10 therein on which the pipes 7 rest, and the latter are preferably connected'at a central point by a coupling 11 having a nipple'12 to which a fiexible` or other pipe 13 connected to a faucet or other source of fluid supply, is joined. I

The perforations 8 in the nozzle lie close to and above the inner Walls 4 of the chambers 2 and 3 and when water under pressure is introduced into the nozzle, a stream is directed downwardly along these walls in each case and is thencedirected `outwardly and upwardly, as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 2, so that circular currents are set up in the chamber due to the curvature of the walls. I have further found by experiment that in order to obtain an eicientcirculation and a complete circular movement of these currents it is preferable that the inner Wall 4 of t-he chamber at approximately the oint where it merges into the bottom wall of a less degree of curvature than the corresponding portion of the outer or opposite i Inasmuch as a pocket of dead water isapt to form in the neighborhood of and above the discharge point of the nozzle where the stream or current after completing the circuit has about lost its momentum, and hence the prints are likely to come to rest and lodge at this point, l provide in 'each chamber a downwardly curved baffle plate 14 that presents a continuous concave baile surface extending from a point above the surface level of the chamber down to a spaced relationship with the top of the center wall 4, which baille plate preferably extends throughout the length of the receptacle and of the nozzle pipes 7. rllhey thus form between them a chamber 15 that constitutes an overflow chamber and is provided with an overiow opening 16 at one end, or if desired, both ends of the container. rilhe discharge nozzle 7 is located in this chamber and discharges through passages 17 formed between the baffle plates 14 and the center walls 4.

The bathe plates, aside from forming the overflow chamber, tend to direct the spent current crossing the chambers at the surfa downwardly again and offer a smooth wall against which the prints are not disposed to lodge. F urthermore, the passages 17, whlch form the only communication between the respective treating chambers 2 and 3 and the overflow chamber 15 must afforda means of exit for the returning currents on their .way to the point of discharge, even though the nozzle 1s discharging through the same passages. The water that has made the circuit of each chamber 'and arrived in the vicinity of the bafiie plate, as before mentioned, is'

into the overflow chamber. In this wa 'the two currents, the one incoming an the other outgoing, ass very closeto cach other and if any of t e prints are carried to the point of egress from the treating chambers 2 and 3, they are immediately taken up by the stronger, or at least more concentrated incoming currents and are again started on their revolutions, as before. Thus the' frequent trouble heretofore had Iwith many devices of the kind duc to the prints clogging, eventually, where the water runs ed 'from the chamber, is obviated. The passages 17 and the discharge points of the nozzle are all well below the normal `surface level of the water in all the compartments, as defined by the overflow opening 16, and I have found that the degree of submer ence of the nozzle has quite a litle to do with the eii.

eiency and strength of the currents roduced, but the proportions illustrated, be

lieve to be about right.

I claim as my invention: Y 1. In a photographic print washer, the

combination with a chamber of substantially semi-circular cross section, of means for directing a .stream downwardly along one side wall of the chamber, the curvature of said side wall where it merges with the .bottom wall being less than the curvature of the corresponding portion of the opposite wall.

2. In a photographic print washer, the combination with a treating chamber and an overflow chamber, said chambers being provided with an intercommunicating substantially vertical passage below the overflow level of the overflow chamber and above its bottom, of means for directing a stream from said passage vdownwardly into the treating chamber.

3. In a photographic print washer, the combination with a treating chamber and an overflow chamber, said chambers bein provided with an intercommunicating su stantially vertical passage below the overflow level of the overflow chamber and above its bottom, of a discharge nozzle arranged in the overflow chamber to direct a stream downwardly through the passage into the treating chamber.'

4. In a photographic print washer, the

lcombination with a substantiallyk semi-cy' lind'rical treating chamber, of a nozzle arranged to extend continuously along one of the side walls of the chamber and to dis-k charge a stream from a point well below the normal surface level of the chamber downwardly along said wall and a baffle memberv arranged to provide a continuous inclined battle surface extending from a point above the surface level of the chamber downwardly to the point of discharge of they nozzle. f

-5. In a photo aphic print washer, the

combination with a container comprising two adjacently arranged treating chambers havinga common center wall between them,

-thc top of which wall is below the normal surface level of the chambers, of a baiile plate in each chamber extending from above the surface level downwardly into spaced relationship with the center wall, said battle plates forming an overflow chamber between them and la nozzle supported on said center Wall and adapted to direct a stream downwardly along the same into each chamber.

7. Ina photographic print washer, the

Louwes combination with a tlreating chamber and an HOW therethrough ini/c the overow cham.- overlow chamber sealed from each othenexbei' and allow the incoming andil outgomg cept for an intercommunicating passage bestreams to pass in close proximity.-

tween them below the overiow level, of JHN A. RBERTSN. 5 means for discharging a stream from the Witnesses:

passage into the treating chamber, said pas- H. R. Demme,

sage being of suiicient size to permit a back- G. MENLINWKE. 

